Bottle crate



' L. H. PAYNE.

BOTTLE CRATE. APPLlCATION FILED MAR- 22, 1920.

Patnted June 20, 1922.

srares cmre LEE H. PAYNE, or CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

BOTTLE CRATE.

Application filed March 532. 1920.

T 0 r ZZ whom it mag concern:

Be it known that 1, LEE H. PAYNE, a citizen of the United. States, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Bottle Crates, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to crates for holding bottles, and particularly to that type of crates in which the walls of the pockets are developed by CIOSSiIlg fiat strips of metal having their ends anchored into the side and end walls of the crate, and in which the bottoms of the pockets are provided by metal strips running beneath the pockets.

The object of the present invention is to develop a more rigid construction of pocket walls from the crossing strips of metal; also to develop a construction of supporting strips or bottoms which will better protect the bottles resting thereon. Accordingly, one feature of the present invention consists in arranging the strips of metal, which are to form the walls of the pockets. with their greater dimension extending vertically, and with the strips intersecting one another so that the upper and lower edges of the crossing strips are in substantially the same planes, the strips being notched one into the other at the points of intersection so that they become mutually sustaining vertically as well as horizontally, and the ends of the strips being firmly anchored in opposed walls of the crate so that the strips remain under a measure of tension and each group of intersecting partition strips becomes a unitary suspension structure.

Another feature consists in corrugating the strips that form the bottom of the pockets with their waves extending vertically, so that when the bottom strips are anchored between opposed walls of the crate they may be put under considerable tension. permittedby the longitudinal resiliency of the strip, and thus made to absorb shocks incident to dropping bottlesupon them and avoid stretching downwardly, and with the further assurance that in the event of distortion of the bottom by improper handling or by intrusion of some projecting object up ward into the bottom space, the vertical di mension developed by the corrugated strip will be such as to keep the bottle from contact with the ground or other object even though the bottom strip should sag into contact therewith at one or more points.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented 51111 20,

Serial No. 367,730.

1 represents the opposed end walls, and 2 v the opposed side walls of a crate, preferably made of wood and constructed in accordance with my United States Letters Patent No. 1,331,364, issued February 17th, 1920. Firmly anchored in the end walls 1 and tightly stretched between said walls are longitudinal partitions 3, which stand with their greater dimension vertical for the greater portion of their length, their extreme ends, however, being twisted through an angle of 90 to present the greater dimension horizontally as the ends enter the wall of the crate for anchorage. Intersecting the longitudinal partitions 3 are transverse partitions 4 similarly arranged with their greater dimension vertical for the greater portion of their length, but preferably having their ends deflected to present the greater dimension horizontally where the ends enter into anchoring relation with the side walls 2 of the crate. These transverse partitions are likewise stretched tightly between the opposed walls in which they are anchored. The partition strips 3 and 4 are oppositely notched at their crossings?) so that they may intersect and liebetween the same horizontal planes and become mutually sustaining not only against lateral displacement, but vertically as well. That is to say,

the notches are proportioned so that the thickness of the metal of one strip fits snugly into the notch formed in the other strip; and in addition to each strip being firmly anchored against displacement laterally to itself and longitudinally of the other strip, any load which tends to depress the strips vertically will cause the walls of the upwardly presented notch to press firmly against the intersecting strip, with consequent stiffening of the whole structure.

The bottom strips 6 have their greater dimension extended horizontally, with their ends firmly anchored in the end walls 1 of the crate. and with corrugations extending preferably from end to end but at least to an i extent which presents a series of corrugations to receive thebottom of each bottle.

, With this construction of bottom strips, the

strips may be introduced under considerable tension, and this tension will-be maintained by the longitudinal resiliency of the strips, so that tendency of the metal of the strips to take on a permanent set under the constant dropping of the bottles upon them will be minimized, and even in case the strips beneath a given pocket should, by violence, be bent downwardly until the corrugations rest upon the ground, or some unevenness that intrudes upward into contact with the bottom strip, the strips will still hold the bottle out of contact with the ground or intruding object.

I claim: A bottle crate comprising rigid sustaining S of their greater transverse dimension horizontal and their broader faces in position to receivc the impact of bottles dropped into the pockets; said strips being corrugated vertically to develop longitudinal resiliency therein and having their ends anchored in opposed walls of the crate under initial longitudinal tension and being otherwise free from vertical restraint between their ends.

i 'ned at Chicago, Illinois, this 15th day arch, 1920. I ,7

' LEE H. PAYNE. 

